Google Apps for Education, a version of Google’s web-based application and productivity suite tailored for educational institutions, has won the endorsement of the states of Iowa and Colorado.

The states will offer Google Apps, (GMail, Google Sites, Calendar, Groups, Video and Docs), as well as associated training and support, to schools and other public educational institutions. In total, around 3000 schools will have the opportunity to use the application suite.

This latest announcement comes just two months after Oregon became the first state to ink a deal with Google for Apps. Google Apps represents a significant cost saving for schools over traditional desktop-based productivity suites, both in terms of software licensing fees and also reduced deployment and maintenance overheads. According to Google, the Oregon deal alone will save the Department of Education $1.5 million per year.

“As a former teacher, I can see how these tools will engage students, make the classroom a more vibrant place and allow teachers to work together more collaboratively.”

Google is keen to win over large clients with its Enterprise product range, of which Apps forms a key component. he company will be very pleased with the momentum that Apps for Education is gathering. However, Google is likely to face increased competition from other providers of cloud-based productivity tools; Microsoft recently launched a version of Office that allows users to create Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents in a web browser.